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COMMUNITY RECORDER
Your Community Recorder newspaper serving Covington, Independence, Latonia, Ryland Heights, Taylor Mill E-mail: kynews@communitypress.com T h u r s d a y, A u g u s t 1 3 , 2 0 0 9
William E. Durr branch children’s programmers Jenny Neltner, Janet Millner and Kate Broadhurst
rcoomer@nky.com
A calling
Maggie Bauereis is starting her school year a world away. The 24-year-old Villa Hills native will leave for a trip to teach in the Republic of Kosova as part of the Prishtina High school, an American Schools International mission funded school. Read what drove Bauereis to take the trip and what she hopes to accomplish in her year there. LIFE, B1
Share your vacation photos
Whether you’re headed to the beach or the mountains this summer, we want to publish your vacation photos. To get started, go to NKY.com/Share and follow the steps there to send your photos to us. Be sure to identify everyone in the photo and which community they live in. Photos will appear on your community page and may even make it into your local newspaper, so start sharing today!
Big business
Participating in the 4-H MiniSociety program sponsored by the Kentucky Cooperative Extension Services gave youth in the area the opportunity to see how to manage a business in the real world. Students learned complex structures and models such as supply and demand and scarcity principles. Read more about this innovative opportunity. SCHOOLS, A5
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City sewer refunds are on the way By Regan Coomer
Volume 11 Issue 43 © 2009 The Community Recorder ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
W e b s i t e : N K Y. c o m B E C A U S E C O M M U N I T Y M AT T E R S
Refund checks for wrongfully collected sewer fees could appear in Independence residents’ mailboxes The class action suit William Cobble v. City of Independence begun in 2006 was resolved in April 2009 in favor of residents who paid a sewer maintenance fee to the city from 1999 to 2005 after the sewer system had already been turned over to Sanitation District No.1. Residents and businesses will receive a cut of an $803,000 settlement less 24.5 percent in attorney fees and a $2,500 payment to Cobble as class representative. Since April, a firm has been working to determine what portion of the settlement each resident or business will receive. Bottom Line Associates of Fort
Mitchell, the accounting firm hired, has been aided by the city, county and SD-1 since April to make the list of recipients as accurate as possible, said Brandon Voelker, attorney on behalf of the residents. “They’ve almost been hand checking it to make sure the right people are in it,” Voelker said. “Once it’s done, it’s done.” The process has taken longer, Voelker said, because residents and businesses were not required to submit information to receive a refund; instead, if you lived or owned a business in the city during that time, you automatically receive a refund. “We’re not making people do anything other than cash a check,” he said. Between 5,000-6,000 residents and businesses will get sewer monies back. An average household probably paid about
More information The $803,000 settlement of William Cobble v. City of Independence to residents and businesses wrongfully charged sewer maintenance fees from 1999 to 2005 does not include monies received from Fowler Creek residents during the same time. Fowler Creek assessment funds have been retained by the city per ordinance 2001-O-11 to pay back the $7 million bond used to construct a sewer system in that area. For more information, visit cityofindependence.org. $25 a year to the city and will likely receive an $80 to $100 refund, Voelker said. Bigger institutions such as schools will receive a bigger portion of the settlement because they paid more initially. Portions were calculated using
SD-1 billing records from five or six quarters, determining an average and “extrapolating back,” Voelker said. Independence City Clerk Pat Taney said she and her staff have reviewed the list of recipients compiled by Bottom Line Associates to check for accuracy. Taney said the staff used their years of experience at the city to find residents on the list who weren’t in city limits, who use a septic tank as opposed to public sewers and some residents who should get a refund, but were listed with a zero balance. “We want to see people get the refund who should get it back,” she said. Voelker hopes the suit’s outcome will encourage people to pay more attention to their bills. “Sometimes people are hit with charges quite frankly they shouldn’t be paying,” he said.
Off Pike festival calling for artists’ work By Regan Coomer rcoomer@nky.com
Covington has doubled the number of artists who can participate in the Fifth Annual Art Off Pike Festival Oct. 10, but 50 spots are still available for creative types in Greater Cincinnati. Deadline for submission is Aug. 15 and so far only 50 artists have signed up for the festival, which takes place on Seventh and Pike streets between Madison and Russell. Art Off Pike provides a fewand-far-between opportunity to showcase your art or craft, said Natalie Bowers, Covington Arts District Manager. “It’s a great chance for artists to not only share their wares, but also to see who’s around,” she said. “It’s a great chance to see who’s who and cross pollinate with other artists.” Local artists shouldn’t be put off if they’re not painters or sculptors, Bowers said; all media can be featured in the show. “We really really want to welcome new faces,” she said. “If you’re making stationery, come; if you’re making homemade textiles, come.” Cost is $40 for artists to display their art at the festival. Artists receive 100 percent of sales and are also eligible for cash prizes
PROVIDED
Customers were caught in the act of treasure hunting at the 2008 Art Off Pike Festival. from a jury. First place will receive $500, second place $300 and third place $200. Art Off Pike is not restricted to Covington residents. In fact, Bowers hopes the festival will draw artists and art enthusiasts from all over Greater Cincinnati, not just Covington. “We’re not recognizing geo-
graphical boundaries. We see this as a region,” Bowers said. “We want the artists that are in Cincinnati to feel welcome and we want to offer the regional audience for the artists to have a reason to come visit us here.” Art Off Pike chairman Ron Einhaus said the festival improves and grows every year.
“I think this year’s going to be exciting,” he said. “The whole goal is to highlight more artists.” To register to showcase your art in the Art Off Pike Festival, visit covingtonarts.com or artoffpike.com. Artists can also call Bowers at 292-2322 for more information. Registration deadline is Aug. 15.
County animal shelter seeks volunteers By Jason Brubaker jbrubaker@nky.com
Deb Marvin’s entrance to the dog adoption center in the Kenton County Animal Shelter is greeted each day with a myriad of wagging tails, excited barks and rattling of cages as the dogs bounce around, hoping to catch her attention. “You come in here and see all of their faces, and you end up just wanting to take them all home,”
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said Marvin. “This is just such a cool way to be around them and help out.” Marvin is one of about 15 volunteers at the shelter, which recently celebrated the grand opening of a new wing, allowing them to care for even more dogs and cats. With the additional space and the ability to hold more animals for longer periods of time, Volunteer Coordinator Elizabeth Cochran said the shelter is actively seeking more volunteers.
“Because we can hold animals longer, we really have a need for more people who can help out,” said Cochran. “It really is a rewarding experience for anyone who loves animals, and we’d love to get some more people in here.” Cochran said the volunteers must be at least 18 years old, and willing to work at least 12 hours each week, with tasks ranging from serving as an adoption counselor to cleaning cages to answering phones and greeting visitors.
Diana Curtis, who started volunteering in March at the shelter, said she enjoys seeing all of the animals each day, and especially loves being a part of the adoption process. “It’s a great feeling when you match up a family with the dog or cat they want and see them go home happy,” she said. “Those are the best days for us here.” For more information about the shelter or to become a volunteer, call 356-7400.
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